Animal-trap.



No. 805,941. PATENTED Nov. 28, 1905.

A. ARNBSEN.

ANIMAL TRAP.

APPLICATION FILED FBB.24,1906.

PATENTED NOV. 28, 1905. A. ARNESBNL ANIMAL TRAP. APPLICATION FILED r212. 24. 1905 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

ANDREW ARNESEN, OF DES MOINES, IOWA.

ANIMAL-TRAP.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Nov. 28, 1905.

Application filed February 24,1905. Serial No. 247,201;

' improved construction for self and ever set animal-traps.

My invention consists in the construction, arrangement, and combination of elements hereinafter set forth,pointed out in my claims, and illustratedby the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of the complete trap. Figs. 2 and 3 are end elevations of the trap. Fig. 4 is a detail vertical section of the trap device detached from the cage. Fig. 5 is a perspective of the complete device.

In the construction of the device as shown the numeral lO'designates the bottom, 11 12 the side walls, and 13 the outer end wall of a trapdevice. The trap device is open at its inner end and is formed'with a cross-bar 14: adjacent thereto and connecting the upper margins of the side walls 11 12. A trap-door 15 is mounted horizontally in and normally closes the open top of the trap device and is supported pivotally on a rod 16, journaled in the side walls 11 12. "It will be observed that the pivot-rod 16 is nearer to the end wall 13 than to the open end of the-trap device, and to hold the trap-door 15 normally in horizontal-position, a weight 17 is mounted on the lower face'of the rear end of said door and voi erbalances slightly the tendency of the door to tip in opposition to said weight. The

weight 17 normally contacts with an anglestop 18, fixed to the'wall 13. A boxer-housing 19 is mounted on and depends from the lower face of the trap-door15, and ears 2O of the trap device.

project from said housing toward the open end A trigger 21, preferably formed of round wire, with a loop 22 adjacent one end, is pivoted on a pin 23, traversing said loop and mounted in the ears 20. .One end' portion of the trigger 21 is formed as ahook 2 1 and projects through a slot 25 in the cross: bar 1 1 and normally engages said cross-bar and aids the weight 17 in sustaining the trapdoor in a horizontal' position. An aperture a slot in the rear end of the housing. A leaf-spring 27 is mounted in and fixed at one end to the bottom of the housing 19, and said leaf-spring normally engages the long arm of the trigger 21 within the housing andsustains the trigger-plate 26 flush with the trapdoor 15. The trap device (indicated generally in Fig. 1 by the numeral 12 and in Fig. 2by the numeral 13 as designating side and end walls, respectively,-thereof) is mounted in and communicates with one end portion of a cage 28. The cage 28 preferably is made of woven-wire or similar perforated or meshwork material, and preferably is plane on its bottom and arched on its top. An entrance cage 29 ismounted on and arches over the trap device, is open at one end 30, and is fixed to the cage 28 at its opposite end. A bait-box 31 is mounted in the cage 28 adjacent the inner end of the entrance-cage 22, and preferably is provided with a hinged door in its top, whereby bait may be inserted and secured therein. One end portion 32 of the cage 28 is provided with a door 33, through which access may be had to the interior of the cage, especially for the purpose of placing bait in the box 31 and removing animals from the cage.

In the practical use of the device an animal enters the open end of the entrance-cage by walking onthe trap-door 15 toward and in search of the bait in the box 31. When the head of the animal is in proximity to thebait in the box 31, one or the other of its forepaws will apply pressure to the trigger-plate 26 and in so doing will depress the trigger '21against the resilience of the spring 27 and .releases the hook 24: from the cross-bar 14, whereupon the trap-door will oscillate and provide a runway inclined downward toward moved through the door .33.

I claim as my invention 1. An animal-trap comprising a cage, a door in-one end of said cage and an entrance-port 1n the opposite end of said cage, the trap device communicating with said entrance-port,

a door mounted for oscillation in the top of said trap device, a trigger-plate in'said door,

a trigger carrying said plate, a stop adapted to be engaged by said trigger, and an entrance-cage arched over said trap device.

2. An animal-trap, comprising a cage and an entrance-port at one end and a door at the other end, a trap device communicating with the entrance-port of the cage and com prising a bottom, side Walls, an end Wall and a crossbar opposite the end wall, a trap-door pivotally mounted in the top of said trap device, a trigger carried by said door and normally engaging said cross-bar, a trigger-plate in said door carried by said trigger, a housing de- ANDREW ARNESEN.

Witnesses:

W. G. BALLARD, S. 0. SWEET. 

